A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
No stranger to embarrassing disclosures and revelations, the federal Justice Department recently saw the failed 'gunwalking' stings of Operation Fast and Furious end up at the top of Google's News Search when the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms chief and the U.S. Attorney for Arizona resigned 'amid fast and furious uproar' and a rapidly expanding internal investigation.
At first glance, 'gunwalking' is a loopy scandal about incompetent operatives hoping to discover key players in a gun-trafficking ring in Arizona by observing "straw purchasers" buy assault weapons on behalf of the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico and then...doing nothing. Some of these weapons were traced to the murder of a U.S. Border Patrol agent last year. It is clear that incompetence has had fatal consequences, particularly because Mexican drug cartels can now personally thank the U.S. government for acting as accessories to weapons purchases that evade tough Mexican gun control laws. As a DoJ employee recently pointed out, Operation Fast and Furious has become a 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy.'
But gunwalking has had me thinking about our role in the larger Mexican drug conflict. It is clear that Mexico's 'war on drugs' is turning the border regions into something out of Afghanistan or Somalia. It is also clear that constantly escalating violence threatens to wipe out Mexico's civic fabric, and--let's face it--create a failed state out of our neighbor. It seems beyond tragic, however, that arms fueling death and destruction in Mexico often originate in the U.S., and that our Second Amendment rights are being exploited by narco-terrorists in Mexico.
How can we best tackle this problem? Whatever the U.S. government is doing right now isn't working.
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Dec '10
Re: A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
The 21st amendment got rid of the ridiculous prohibition on alcohol. We now need to get rid of the other stupid prohibitions.
Apr '11
Re: A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
I'm reading "Killing Pablo" about the life and death of Pablo Escobar and am reminded of the scourge drug trafficking was to Columbia and how we became involved at the end because of Presidents Reagan and H.W. Bush. Republicans handle evil better than Democrats because the know it exists. The Columbian elite ruling class were so inept, the book explains, because of their naiveté toward the bad guys and not understanding their true evil intentions.
I believe our Democratic leadership in all areas of government display this same ineptness. My apologies to those who are capable but must suffer the ineptness and naivete of those above them.
Oct '10
Re: A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
I'll bet a good portion of the packaged food and drink fueling death and destruction in Mexico originates in the U.S., which provides about half of Mexico's imports. What makes firearms special?
Re: A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
...legalize pot?
Re: A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
These are not "imports." These are illegally trafficked weapons that should not be in Mexico by United States law. Hence the failed stings to catch the smugglers. The question is, Where should law enforcement be concentrated to prevent this type of thing from happening? The border? More internal surveillance of gun trafficking rings?
Re: A 'Perfect Storm of Idiocy?'
Or changing what we're doing in the "war on drugs?" I don't mean to channel Ron Paul here, but it seems like a lot of what he's saying about it is coming true right now.